Not By My Strength

Okay, I have a confession.  I am weak...so weak.  Every single day is a battle.  I wage war in my thoughts, in my surroundings, and in my actions.  I want to quit.  I want to sleep in and not work out in the mornings.  I want to return to former eating habits - mainly eating out or grabbing fast food on the way home for dinner.

But I don't.  It has nothing to do with me, and it has absolutely everything to do with Him - Jesus.

 
Thank God for this verse!  How many of us are weak and weary?  How many of us need strength and power?  In at least one aspect of our lives, I think we ALL can say that we are weak and need an increase in power.

This week this was brought to my attention time and time again.  I had so much going on - busy evenings, had to attend a funeral that brought back many memories of my own father's funeral, had headaches and was tired most of the week.  There were times this week I wanted to turn my alarm off or hit snooze just one more time.  On Thursday this week it was a huge mental battle for me.  All afternoon at school I just started thinking about stopping at Steak-N-Shake on the way home and grabbing my dinner.  What did I do instead?  I prayed.  Hard.  Then I drove right by that restaurant and every other restaurant on the way home, and I ate the meal I had prepared earlier in the week.

I love Jesus, and my ultimate motivation to get healthy is for Him.  So I can be better used for His purposes.  I saw a quote once, and I continue to come back to it time and time again.

Lord, help me to always honor You in all that I do.

Non-Scale Victories

Last week I kept noticing non-scale victories, and on Sunday, I figured out why.  I didn't lose very much weight.  I still lost weight - but I lost less than one pound - 0.8 of a pound to be exact.  This is by far the smallest amount of weight I have lost since I began taking control of my life and actively working towards a healthy lifestyle.

Old Allison would have been bummed.  I know - ridiculous.  New Allison celebrated that small victory, but she was also so thankful that the she was reminded of all of the non-scale victories throughout the week.

What is a non-scale victory?  You will sometimes see it abbreviated as NSV.  It simply means that you notice other changes in your healthy lifestyle journey that are not related to the  number on the scale.  Here are some examples of non-scale victories: 

So what were some of my non-scale victories?

*A pair of pants that I would wear but couldn't get zipped all of a sudden were able to be zipped last week.
*I went from wearing jeans with elastic to jeans that zip. Jeans that previously did not fit me!
*I was able to increase the weight of the weights I was using in my workouts.
*I noticed while I was working out last week that my legs looked more slender and so did my ankles.  See?

 

*I don't have exact measurements yet (because I plan on taking them on Sunday or Monday), but I KNOW that I have lost inches, particularly around my waist.  

*Saying no to junk, junk that has ruled my life for longer than I care to remember, is not as tempting as it once was.

*And the best non-scale victory?  People are starting to notice and comment on it - lots of people! I. LOVE. IT.  That is probably the most encouraging thing to me right now.  

I think these non-scale victories are important to document so that when I do get discouraged I can reflect back on how far I have come.  I am striving to remember this:

Treat Yourself

One thing I firmly believe in is that you have to treat yourself so I do just that.  I set a goal each week, and if I accomplish that goal I reward myself.  My rewards have specific qualifications:

*something I want (obviously)
*not too expensive (since I am rewarding myself weekly..that could add up, and this girl is on a budget!)
*has to fit in my overall goal of becoming the best version of me (workout equipment, clothes, kitchen gadgets, etc.)

There is ONE no-no when it comes to rewarding myself.  It CANNOT be food.

I have been eating healthier, planning my meals, and working out consistently now for four weeks. That means I have earned four rewards!  My rewards so far have been:

Week 1: new cutting board and measuring cups
Week 2: new super cute leggings
Week 3: heavier pair of weights
Week 4: new water bottle

Some future rewards I am thinking about are some new jeans, iTunes gift card to download some new music, new running socks, and some other things.  When I am shopping if I want something I jot it down as a future reward.  This has been brilliant for me because it has also cut down on my impulse buying.

Filling out a calendar with my goals and recording my workouts has been great for me, too!  There is something about seeing an entire month filled out with daily workouts - it is empowering!  

What about you? Do you reward yourself when you meet goals?  What are some of your rewards?  I would love to hear some ideas!